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Babson University's Paul McMann, the whole thing smacks of massive fraud, allowing colleges and universities to rake in millions of dollars from athletes who more than likely will never get their degrees. If the CPBL is successful, it is not too far-fetched to envision colleges one day opting to sponsor a professional team to advertise themselves rather than corrupting their amateur programs.

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Taste -- Review Outlook: They Got Game
Publication info: Wall Street Journal Eastern edition New York N.Y. New York N.Y19 Mar 1999: W17.
ProQuest document link
ABSTRACT ABSTRACT
They dont call it "March Madness" for nothing. On court folks like Temple Coach John Chaney and former
Georgetown Coach John Thompson insist on objective scoring: The team with the most points wins. In court
however they incline to agree with a federal judge who has just ruled that the National College Athletic
Associations eligibility requirement of a minimum 820 SAT score out of a possible 1600 discriminates against
African-Americans. To Babson Universitys Paul McMann the whole thing smacks of massive fraud allowing
colleges and universities to rake in millions of dollars from athletes who more than likely will never get their
degrees.
Take the Temple Owls who square off against the Purdue Boilermakers tomorrow night. As Coach Chaney says
his only interest is in having the best players which may explain the Owls 17 graduation rate. Cincinnati whom
Temple upset earlier in the tournament hasnt graduated a basketball player in seven years. And during his years
at Georgetown Mr. Thompson opposed virtually every NCAA effort to raise academic eligibility standards. No
surprise then that the NCAA figures show a 47 graduation rate for its basketball team barely half that for the
general Georgetown population.
FULL TEXT
They dont call it "March Madness" for nothing. On court folks like Temple Coach John Chaney and former
Georgetown Coach John Thompson insist on objective scoring: The team with the most points wins. In court
however they incline to agree with a federal judge who has just ruled that the National College Athletic
Associations eligibility requirement of a minimum 820 SAT score out of a possible 1600 discriminates against
African-Americans. To Babson Universitys Paul McMann the whole thing smacks of massive fraud allowing
colleges and universities to rake in millions of dollars from athletes who more than likely will never get their
degrees.
Take the Temple Owls who square off against the Purdue Boilermakers tomorrow night. As Coach Chaney says
his only interest is in having the best players which may explain the Owls 17 graduation rate. Cincinnati whom
Temple upset earlier in the tournament hasnt graduated a basketball player in seven years. And during his years
at Georgetown Mr. Thompson opposed virtually every NCAA effort to raise academic eligibility standards. No
surprise then that the NCAA figures show a 47 graduation rate for its basketball team barely half that for the
general Georgetown population.
Enter Mr. McMann. Unlike would-be reformers who aim to take the money out of the game the Babson University
accounting prof wants to put money into a new professional league. Specifically his Collegiate Professional
Basketball League will pay players between 17 and 22 years old a 5000 signing bonus and a 9000 annual
stipend and insist that they go to school at least part-time which the league also pays for. When a player ages out
of the CPBL the league will continue to pay his room board and tuition for another four years. The way the CPBL
figures it competing in a big-time college basketball program is more like a job. Why not recognize the fact
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All this is anathema to the NCAA which operates under the fiction that its college programs are amateur athletics.
Alas the consequences have been disastrous. According to Northeastern Universitys Center for the Study of Sport
in Society nearly 65 of urban teens believe they have a shot at playing pro ball. In fact less than half of 1 of
those who even make it to the Division I college level ever make it to the pros. The real story is that two out of three
NCAA basketball players having sacrificed their studies to their sport find their scholarships have run out before
they have finished their schooling. In the CPBL by contrast a 22-year-old who is beginning to realize he has no
career in hoops will still have the wherewithal to get himself a real degree.
To date the league has attracted just two team sponsors Internet hub Lycos and Internet service provider
Acunet.Net which it will announce Monday. But the plan is for eight teams by November and the PAX family
channel has already agreed to broadcast the leagues games. The way Mr. McMann figures it hes not in the
basketball business but in the advertising business. The idea is that corporations and even nonprofits might wish
to sponsor a team as a way of promoting their brand. If the CPBL is successful it is not too far-fetched to envision
colleges one day opting to sponsor a professional team to advertise themselves rather than corrupting their
amateur programs.
In the meantime the big bucks involved -- the 300 million in TV advertising revenue the multimillion-dollar Nike
endorsements the under-the-table money to college players -- provide powerful incentives for university officials
and coaches to wink at their players declining academic performances. The virtue of Mr. McManns operation is
that it gives a piece of this action to the players who created it along with an academic plan more suited to reality.
With but eight months to go before opening tip-off and only two teams signed the CPBL is of course not in the
same league as the NCAA. Mr. McMann is betting that this will be his greatest advantage.
See related letter: "Letters to the Editor: A Great Coach A Great Educator" -- WSJ April 13 1999
DETAILS
Subject:
Editorials College basketball Professional basketball
People:
McMann Paul
Company:
Collegiate Professional Basketball League National Collegiate Athletic Association
NCAA
Publication title:
Wall Street Journal Eastern edition New York N.Y.
Pages:
W17
Number of pages:
0
Publication year:
1999
Publication date:
Mar 19 1999
Section:
WEEKEND JOURNAL
Publisher:
Dow Jones Company Inc
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